Not That Bad #Wattys2018

Chapter Two

I buy stockings, tampons and a whole lot of pain killers at the store after detention. Then I drive to the park to have a smoke. There are a lot of cameras out here and a girl is sitting on the park bench in a light pink chiffon dress pretending to read a book. The director is tell her to tilt her chin up, no not like that, up, a little higher, perfect!

I look at myself in the rear view mirror pretending that I'm in this photo shoot too, for smoking or something. I narrow my eyes like I've seen the women in the magazines do and make a poker face and let my cigarette hang loosely from my lips.

I'm 5' 10 and I have straight black hair that reaches my waist. I have green eyes and a little rosebud of a mouth according to Dad. Loads of people have said I'm very pretty and I should be a model. I did work with an agency once, but they wanted me to quit smoking because it was having an effect on my eyes and I was at one of those stages that I couldn't quit. And besides, I didn't want to quit.

By the time I get home it's seven o'clock. "Detention?" Mom asks when I walk through the door.

"Detention." I say.

"That's the third time this week." Dad says, turning the page of his newspaper.

I decide not to mention that it was actually the fourth time and tomorrow would be the fifth. I go up to my room real quick before they can ask me any questions. I didn't want to tell them why I was in the detention in the first place.

I love my parents to death and I know I'm a great big disappointment to them. I was supposed to be a rich kid, who got straight As at school, who had a boyfriend who was a swimmer or played golf or something and I was supposed to have plans for the future.

Instead I was a rich kid, who failed all her classes, never had a boyfriend for over three weeks and had zero plans for the future. So because I'm a disappointment to them, I try to at least be good at home. I don't put my feet up on Mom's white leather couch and I use a coaster when I put my drinks on the mahogany table.

I lock the door of my room, change into my over sized sweater and my thick wool socks, put on my glasses (yes I wear glasses but only at home) and then I sit at my desk and take out my home work.

Most people think I don't do home work because I just don't want to, but they're wrong. Every night I take out my home work to try it. And I stare at it for hours because I just can't do it. I don't understand shit and I guess that's because I'm never at class and when I am, I'm sleeping.

Truth is, I'm an F and I'll always be an F. Just like I can't do my homework, I can't do anything else and I'm going to fail my final exams and have to live off my parents or some rich old man for the rest of my life. To be honest, that scares me. I close my books and listen to Break the Rules by Charli XCX until I fall asleep.

***

You know when you hear a word for the very first time and then you start hearing it everywhere you go? I'm like, shit, I still don't know what that means. Well that works with people too.

After I saw that boy in detention, I started seeing him everywhere. In the cafeteria, in the hallways and in the principal's office ( trust me, we were there for totally different reasons). I even saw him press a girl against the lockers and kiss her, like a pro. 

So when I was called to the principal office after lunch with the other boys who were failing classes, I wasn't surprised that he was there too but obviously not because of bad grades. He was sitting on one of the chairs in the waiting room with his head tilted back and his eyes closed. There are about ten of us crammed in here and there aren't enough seats.

"Get up." I say to Kai.

I try not to be too mean to him because he's going to get me weed next week so I can try it for the very first time. I'm excited, but kinda scared too. What if I like it too much?

He blinks at me and scratches his balls.

"I need to sit. Get up." I say this like it should be obvious,"Come on Kai. Be a gentleman. Let a lady sit." Kai's lips stretch out into a smile.

"I'll be a gentleman when you're a gentle lady."

The boys laugh and I see teacher's pet chuckle. I thought he was sleeping. I feel the heat rush to my cheeks.

"Fuck you, Kai." I say,"Fuck all of you."

The secretary gives me a look and I roll my eyes and plop down on Chase's lap.

"Everyone here is a dick." I tell him.

He doesn't say a word but he starts to play with my hair because he knows I like it. Chase has been my best friend forever. Together we've stolen Twinkies from kid's lunch bags and smashed windows of teachers' cars. I open my mouth to tell him about my plans for Saturday night when Mr Terv calls us in.

I've been inside Mr Terv's office a thousand times but I always like to look around. I especially like the big window that faces the school parking lot. It lets in a lot of light and the view is breath taking. It'll be a pity when I smash it on Saturday.

"If you bums keep failing your classes you'll be bums for the rest of your life." Mr Terv says playing with the bobble head on his desk. The teacher's pet clears his throat.

"Not Eli. Eli is an A." Mr Terv says. "He's the perfect student.That's why he'll be a successful man in the future and you bums are going to be bums. FOREVER."

I clench my fist to prevent myself from getting up and punching Mr Terv in the nose.

"You're so encouraging." I say, rolling my eyes."My parents will looove to hear the optimistic things you have to say to me."

At that Mr Terv examines his bobble head a little too intently. My parents donate a lot of money to Riley Academy and that's probably the only reason I haven't been expelled.

"Well Rori. They'll also love to hear that you have to be tutored. And it's compulsory." Mr Terv says smiling. "And Eli here, president of Peer Helpers, will assign each of you tutors until you don't need them anymore. So for a long, long time. And if your grades are still as terrible as they are now, you're going to be kicked out of school regardless of your economic status."

The boys mumble under their breath. They may be bad but they don't really say much to teachers. Levi whispers something to Han, who whispers it to Chase, who whispers it to me.

"Are there hot girl tutors?" I say, not realizing what I was asking until the words were out of my mouth.

"Yes." Eli says in that deep voice of his.

The boys shrug, willing to take the tutoring and I wonder if they know that Eli's idea of hot might be different from theirs. The girl Eli was kissing today wore her skirt way below her knees AND she had thigh high socks. I shudder, remembering.

"So it's finalized then." Mr Terv says pulling out a piece of paper with very small print, "All of you need to sign here." The boys sign and when it gets to me, I have to decide if I wanted an annoying girl to tutor me or a know-it-all, probably just as annoying boy.

"As long as he doesn't tutor me," I say pointing to Eli, "then I'm okay with this." And then I sign and give the paper back to Mr Terv.